One week afternoon Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs Anil Nandlall called on the Georgetown Mayor and City Council (M&CC) to address the issue of street vending throughout the city, especially in the major commercial districts, vendors along the Stabroek Market area got the hammer dropped on them recently.
The AG had accused the Mayor and City Council of legitimizing criminal occupation of the reserves by accepting a fee from persons and allowing them to vend on the Street corners, accusations that have been strongly rejected by His Worship, Mayor Ubraj Narine.
In a statement, this afternoon Mayor Narine assured more than one hundred affected vendors that his office will protect their bread and butter.
The Mayor indicated that vendors must be protected as they continue to do business in the city. He stressed the commitment of the Council to provide opportunities for its citizens.
“Vendors are essential to our city, you are entrepreneurs who consistently come out despite the weather to do business and that must be commended” he stated.
The midmorning exercise saw the police along with City Constables moving into the area with trucks and other heavy equipment. Vendors, some in tears were forced to watch as their stalls were being dismantled and loaded onto trucks like garbage.
Vendor Roxanne Moses, a single mother who has been selling in front of Stabroek Market for nearly ten years, told this publication in an interview that this is her only source of income; pointing to what remains of her destroyed stall.
She related that she has invested her all into the business and only recently took a loan from IPED to grow her business. Asked about her next move, Roxanne said “She is trying to be strong for her two young children ages 10 and 13.
The PPP Government over the years has had a tumultuous relationship with street vendors in Georgetown, even vowing to make street vending a thing of the past.
More, In The Ring.
